South Africa's coach Rassie Erasmus announced the intention to split the team roster after the first block of Rugby World Cup matches to prevent an early advantage by the All Blacks from New Zealand before the start of the great rivalry series.
According to Erasmus, about 26 players will travel to Argentina, while the remaining 15–17 athletes will stay home to prepare for the matches against the All Blacks. This decision is due to New Zealand's schedule.
The All Blacks are scheduled to play against the Stormers, Sharks, and Bulls before the first match of the great rivalry series, which will take place on August 22nd at Ellis Park stadium, and they will also play against the Lions three days later.
Erasmus emphasized that the main goal is to avoid a situation where players travel to Argentina while New Zealand calmly plays against South African franchises on their own territory. He noted the necessity of returning the players back as they are accustomed to the South African climate and stadiums before playing in the first test match.
The squad split will also allow the coach to carefully manage players returning from injuries, including star playmaker Siya Kolisi, captain Siya Kolisi, and blocker Eben Etzebeth.
However, Erasmus clarified that there will not be a uniform policy for the players remaining in the camp. He stated that individual athletes may be released to their franchises if they require valuable game experience. For example, he mentioned that Siya might be ready for the trip to Argentina, but might not be ready, and then he could play in a week.
Erasmus added that the South African team has already discussed this plan with the franchises, and every decision will be made considering the individual circumstances of the player. He stressed that releasing players will not be a mass event, but will be decided on a case-by-case basis.
Springboks coach Rassie Erasmus gave high praise to Wusi Moyo's performance following his official debut against Wales, which took place in Durban on Saturday.
Springboks coach Rassie Erasmus shared his opinion on Wusi Moyo's debut in the match that ended 43-0 in favor of the team against Wales on Saturday evening in Durban. Moyo, who is a junior Springbok player and is only 20 years old, became the center of international attention. Erasmus provided a balanced assessment of his game.
Erasmus noted: 'I think Wusi played nervously, but that would be normal.' He also emphasized that Moyo became the youngest player at the winger position ever to play for the Springboks, being six months younger than Patrick Lambie, another winger from the Sharks.
The coach explained that debuting against a top-tier team at such a young age is very difficult. 'Look, we have Sasha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, who is returning from injury before the friendly match against Argentina on August 8. He will play against the Pumas,' Erasmus continued. He also added that Handre Pollard suffered a hamstring strain against Scotland and was not ready for this match, but he is now healthy.
Erasmus explained that in the match against Wales, the team could not use either Sasha or Handre, and they did not want to field Mani in the starting lineup. The coach stated that the 43-0 score required significant effort. 'It might not have looked like it, but we had to fight for this win. For a long time, the score was 14-0 before we could take the lead.'
In conclusion, Erasmus reported that the team lacked two wingers, and they wanted to consider Wusi's potential as the next winger, given that they also wanted to study Yakin Ahmed, who is an exceptional winger but is currently in Georgia with the SA U-20 team. 'He was next in line. We did not want to promote Damian (Williams) in this game; we wanted to see how Wusi would cope.'
Quagg Smith, a versatile forward for the Springboks team, recognized Springboks coach Rassie Erasmus as the main ideologue behind the team's experiments with hybrid players, emphasizing that this tactic reflects the coach's broader philosophy regarding rugby.
Smith himself is one of the first 'hybrid' players, thanks to his sevens skills acquired with the Blitzboks. He played on the open flank, as an eighth player, and even substituted for the Boks forwards in test matches. Erasmus's tenure leading the Boks is characterized by a high priority placed on player versatility, allowing many athletes to cover multiple positions, both in the forward line and the backline.
In several examples, such as Pieter-Steph du Toit, Francois Mustert, Marco van der Merwe, Dion Fury, and later players Jan-Hendrik Vessels and Ben-Jason Dixon, they were used in multiple positions in the front row. In the backline, similar changes were demonstrated by Sasha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, Grant Williams, Damian Willemse, Kanan Moody, and Hendre Pollard. Furthermore, Juan Corn, who usually played in a full position, was tested by Erasmus in the wing position.
The most striking examples were Fury and Van der Merwe, who are fundamentally forwards but participated in the hooker position when required by the Boks' scheme, which was most noticeable in the 2023 Rugby World Cup final. Andre Esterhuizen, a 32-year-old player who is a large centre, should also be mentioned; Erasmus valued his potential in the role of a forward, allowing the 'Giant' to change roles during the match as needed.
Smith stated that all credit for the development and evolution of the hybrid player belongs to Rassie. He recounted that Erasmus first approached him at the Loftus training camp with the instruction: 'Listen, we are going to implement a 6-2 split, and you must be able to play on the wing or as a halfback or anything.' Smith noted that Erasmus is capable of convincing people of a common goal and teaching useful skills. He added that for Andre, the ability to play as a forward is a huge advantage because it allows him to receive more test matches.
This coming weekend, the Boks will adopt a more cautious approach to versatility in the match against Wales as part of the Nations Championship. Nevertheless, Vessels, who played in the hooker position against Scotland last week, has been selected for the prop position for Saturday's game (the match starts at 17:40). Ben-Jason Dixon is also included in the squad as a lock backup, despite his skill on the flank, and Willemse is expected to cover the wing, centre, and fullback positions.
Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus generated significant public interest with his very early announcement of the squad for the upcoming match against Scotland this Saturday. As always, announcements from Rassie Erasmus cause a stir, and the lineup presented for the game in Pretoria on Saturday was no exception. The coach revealed the list of players as early as noon on Monday.
Despite numerous changes to the squad, Erasmus retained a solid core of Bulls players for the fixture at Loftus Versfeld Stadium. The Bulls players were not included in the Barbarians match squad as they were still returning home after the United Rugby Championship final in Dublin. There are four Bulls players in the tight five and nine individuals on the bench for the match-23.
The starting trio of wingers presents an exciting mix of diverse talents. The central figure is the versatile workhorse Pieter-Steph du Toit, supported by the powerful runner Paul de Villiers and the sturdy number 8 Evan Russ. De Villiers made a strong impression in his debut against England, and Russ had a valuable chance to showcase his abilities. The addition of Vincent Tshituku, Elrig Luva, and Ben-Jason Dixon to the bench provides insight into the future of wingers in the Boks team.
There was much reaction to Papier's return to the starting lineup after playing for the Boks (and Erasmus) in 2018 when he earned all eight of his badges. However, Pollard, despite his excellent statistics with the Boks, is aware that attention is also focused on him following the unsatisfactory conclusion of the URC season with the Bulls. This veteran plays to show that he still deserves a spot in the green and gold, and Papier plays to justify his return. The combination of these two players after a year-long partnership is a brilliant move by the coach.
Luva will value his chance from the bench, as he was initially not included in the National Championship squad. The opportunity arose for him after the injury to Riley Norton. Luva debuted for the Boks in 2022 at the age of 22, but after four years, he had only a small number of badges. A major reason for this was a terrible leg injury that kept him out of play for almost a year. Luva last played for the Boks in 2024 and intends to use every second on the field at his home ground.
Damian Willemse was close to perfection at fullback against England and was Man of the Match, although an off-field error led to his teammate Damian de Allende receiving the award in front of millions of viewers. Undeniably, both Damians laughed in the dressing room. Now Willemse has the opportunity to demonstrate his skills at inside centre instead of the rested de Allende. He last played there during the Boks' victorious 43-10 match against the All Blacks in Wellington last year. The Boks do not have many players at position 12 besides Andre Esterhuizen and de Allende, so Willemse's ability to play well in this position is an important part of Erasmus's broader plan.
